If you're looking for a topic to blog about next week, check out this story.

Ex NFL Player shaming the teens that trashed his house

Letter to the parents of the Stephentown 300

Brian Holloway's Website: Help Me Save the 300

Update to the story: Holloway is going to press charges.

Hate Speech on Campus

1. Check out this story about an incident at Penn State University.
   http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/50100377#50100377
2. Next Go to the FIRE website and read their mission statement and what they are about. 
3. Look at the "What are Speech Codes?" article and "About Speech Codes" so that you understand how FIRE is defining them.
4. Go to "Using FIRE's Spotlight" in order to understand how to use their database.
5. Go to the database and select a college or university that you have an interest in.
6. On your blog, write a post that responds to the following:
• Describe your chosen university's speech codes (or lack of them).  How do your university’s policies or restrictions on free speech impact you as a prospective student? Does it influence or change the way you view the school? Do you believe that your university’s speech codes are legal or do they infringe on your rights to free speech?
• How might your university react to the parties that you saw in the images during class or on the Today show above?  Would you agree or disagree with their reaction?
7. Next, spend some time browsing FIRE’s website.  Explore their reports, articles, current events, projects.  Then continue your post.  What do you think of FIRE?  Do you agree with their perspective?  Do you agree with their definitions of what constitutes a speech code? Are the “restrictions” and codes they point out necessarily harmful or do they protect students?
8. Write a concluding thought.
9. Spend any remaining time looking at other class members' blogs.  Try to comment on at least two.

Syria

Over the last few days, we've been thinking about 9/11 which naturally brought us to a question that may be the most important to discuss in a democratic society: When and for what reasons should a country respond militarily to an action taken by a foreign nation?
On Tuesday of this week, President Obama made a televised address to the nation in order to attempt to convince the public that military strikes against Syria were necessary and warranted.  On that same day however, Russia advocated a plan that would put Syria's chemical weapons under U.N. control.  President Obama and his advisers indicated that they would be willing to look into that option as well.
Today, it is your task to gather some information about the Syrian crisis and then do a blog post that:

1. Reflects on changes in the United States' since 9/11 both domestically and in its international relations.
2. Engages in the question in italics above as it relates to Syria-should the United States take military action?

Before responding, please explore the resources below.  Start by watching the embedded video.  Then read the transcript of the President's speech (or watch the video).  You may also explore news links like CNN (Be sure to look at the articles in the sidebar) or the NY Times.  Of course, also feel free to look at additional sources.  If the sources you look at influence your opinion you should at least mention them in your blog post (if not cite them). After your response,  comment on the two blogs that come after yours on the list to the right.  When someone comments on yours, you must also respond to the comment.

9/11